HOME BUT NOT HOME

Chapter 2 - Finding Sanctuary

Chapter 2 – Finding Sanctuary

The empty desert
Arlington County, VA
Wednesday, April 29, 2076
09:00 EST GMT-5

No contact, just an empty desert where we trekked West hoping to find sanctuary. Words buzzing in my skull. Forty-two years? Of course, it was a bit of a shock. We just kept moving and didn't utter a word. Now walking across a hot desert, without any water in sight seems like it's murder. However, now we're in a strange era, where God knows what happened.

No sooner did we start walking, that after walking about a mile, two men on hoverbikes, suddenly pulled over near us. Did I say men? Correction, they were humanoid robots. They both stopped us in our tracks, got off their bikes and walked towards us.

"HALT!" said one of the robots. "What business have you out here in the wasteland?"

"We're just trying to find our way." I told them. "We are actually from..."

"They're with me!" spoke I.V.A.N.A, interrupting me. "I'm taking them to the sentries for processing."

"10-4! Alright then, move along!" said the robot. "They're clear!"

The robots then took off.

"I.V.A.N.A?" I asked in shock. "What the hell just happened?"

"Sir, I'll explain when we get to where we need to be. There's a human settlement about five miles away. I just pinged for a transport to come get us." I.V.A.N.A assured us.

"You mean, there are more survivors?" said Ranger.

"Indeed, yes." I.V.A.N.A answered. "More that survived the meteor landing and radioactive gas."

"What exactly is going on?" asked Aurora.

"I'll tell you more once we get there." I.V.A.N.A told her. "Just trust me."

We then looked at each other, and just nodded in agreement. It was then an Uber came, a driverless, hover-Uber. Of course, it was 2076, what did anyone expect? We both got in, and the Uber took off towards the settlement. I.V.A.N.A then sighed, as she may have decided to speak up.

"As you know, the years leading up to 2034, which you were in up until this meteor landing, humanity began to rely more and more on smartphone apps, online services, machines such as robotic vacuum cleaners, self-checkout kiosks, and other automatic endeavors." I.V.A.N.A went on to explain. "So big tech giants, and other professional industries, begin investing millions of dollars, in artificial intelligence, machine learning, computing power, and Big Data. It came to a point some years after Mithra landed in the Atlantic Ocean, where the AI in the machines and robots, started to become sentient and self-aware. These robots in turn thought that humanity was a danger to this planet, and to themselves, and thus enslaved or exiled them. The humans were left to fend for themselves, and they created smaller settlements, and began to rely on cryptocurrency to survive, moving away from dollars and other traditional currencies. Now they hunt, race, trade goods, or do part-time gig works online to survive."

"Oh, jeez!" said Aurora. "Seriously, we let the machines take over?"

"Not just the machines, the radioactive gas from the meteor, along with the uranium in the asteroid, killed most of the world's population, while infecting many other in a farther range, turning them into humanoid, mutated beasts. One which could breathe the atmosphere, as it is now, always hunting those humans who survived, to either turn them into mutants, or simply kill them!" said I.V.A.N.A. "The settlement we are going to is one of the many refugee camps created by surviving humans, they're using shield walls, and military force fields, to keep threats out."

"Looks like we've stumbled into some sci-fi, post-apocalyptic shit." Ranger said.

"I think the people in the settlements will be able to tell us more. Let's keep moving!" I told I.V.A.N.A. "I need to get a proper meal. If those still even exist."